Written questions by Cartlidge.

With reference to his Department's press release entitled UK industry support to Ukraine supercharged with new business centre, published on 16 January 2026, who will lead the business centre.

Cost and staffing details cannot be disclosed at this stage, as revealing commercially sensitive information during an active procurement process could prejudice fair competition among potential delivery partners. The Ministry of Defence will work with the selected delivery partner and relevant stakeholders to develop the hub's operational framework, which will determine resource requirements. These details will be confirmed following contract award and will be subject to normal transparency arrangements.

With reference to his Department's press release entitled Homes fit for heroes with extra £1.5 billion for forces housing through upcoming Strategic Defence Review, published on 31 May 2025, how much of the £7 billion to be spent on military accommodation this Parliament will be spent on Single Living Accommodation.

The Defence Housing Strategy, published on 3 November 2025, sets out plans to improve the standard of Service family homes as part of a generational renewal of Defence family housing. Through the Consumer Charter, 1,000 of the worst homes were refurbished before Christmas 2025 - with hundreds more military properties due to be upgraded by the Spring. Future plans are being worked through carefully, with the ambition to make improvements to homes right across the country and in all nations of the UK, Further updates will be provided in due course following the publication of the Defence Investment Plan. This Government inherited military homes in a terrible state with regular reports of black mould in bedrooms, leaky roofs and broken boilers. We said that we would make defence housing a priority and we are.

If he will list the four Royal Navy vessels that will be equipped with the DragonFire laser in 2027.

The Royal Navy sees the adoption of novel technologies as critical to delivering the lethality of the Hybrid Navy. DRAGONFIRE is a cutting-edge Laser Directed Energy Weapon system and the programme remains on schedule to commence delivery from 2027. DRAGONFIRE is a modular capability providing the Royal Navy agility as to when and where it is deployed, therefore it is not possible to list specific ships into which the capability will be installed. The inclusion of the mission modules concept across the Hybrid Navy, which is already being delivered in the Type 26 and Type 31 Frigates, provides maximum tactical flexibility as to where the Navy could deploy this weapon.

With reference to his Department's press release entitled UK and Poland agree enhanced missile defence and helicopter training cooperation, published on 13 January 2026, whether the joint training will involve any live exercises.

The UK and Poland will engage in joint training which will include a mix of live training and Digital Synthetic elements to maximise the benefits to both nations’ service personnel.

With reference to his Department's press release entitled UK to develop new deep strike ballistic missile for Ukraine, published on 11 January 2026, whether the new missiles will also be manufactured for UK armed forces.

The new ballistic missiles developed under Project NIGHTFALL are intended to provide Ukraine with a long range-punch to counter Russian aggression. All decisions on missile capabilities we are acquiring are made in the Defence Investment Plan which will be published shortly.

How many drones his Department will purchase for (a) Ukraine and (b) the armed forces in March 2026.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 22 December 2025, to Question 100491. Work to deliver the Strategic Defence Review recommendations, including on uncrewed systems, will be prioritised appropriately against the threat as part of the future Integrated Force and set out in the forthcoming Defence Investment Plan. At the last Ukraine Defence Contact Group in October 2025, the Defence Secretary confirmed that £600 million has been invested by the UK this year to accelerate drone delivery to Ukraine, with more than 85,000 military drones delivered in between April and October 2025 out of our aim of 100,000 in this financial year.

What quantum of expenditure was included in UK NATO declared GDP of defence spending arising from VAT receipts in each financial year since 2010.

It is not possible to provide that information within the time available to answer this question. I will write to the hon. Member shortly with an update and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.

Whether he plans to make changes to the headcount of UK staff based at NATO headquarters in Brussels.

The UK is one of the largest contributors of personnel to NATO, underlining our commitment to deterrence and defence of the Euro-Atlantic Area, with personnel deployed over twenty-one countries. The UK will be increasing its footprint within The International Military Staff based at NATO Headquarters, Brussels by seven posts over the next three years.

How many UK staff were employed at NATO headquarters in Brussels in each of the last five financial years.

UK Defence personnel posted to NATO’s headquarters in Brussels include members of the Armed Forces and Ministry of Defence Civil Servants. These figures are captured in the table below. UK Military Staff NATO HQ BrusselsFinancial Year (FY) 2021-22FY 2022-23FY 2023-24FY 2024-25FY 2025-26UK Delegation2020202121International Military Staff (IMS)2425262925Total4445465046* * This will increase to 47 in March 26 UK Civilian Staff NATO HQ BrusselsFY 2021-22FY 2022-23FY 2023-24FY 2024-25FY 2025-26UK Delegation1514101012

With reference to his Department's press release entitled UK to develop new deep strike ballistic missile for Ukraine, published on 11 January 2026, whether any of the new deep strike ballistic missiles will be stockpiled in the United Kingdom.

The new ballistic missiles developed under Project Nightfall are intended to provide Ukraine with a long range-punch to counter Russian aggression as rapidly as possible. At this stage of the project, the Department does not envision stockpiling significant number of Nightfall effectors for long periods of time in the UK.

With reference to his Department's press release entitled UK to develop new deep strike ballistic missile for Ukraine, published on 11 January 2026, how Nightfall will inform future Armed Forces' long range strike projects.

At this stage, there is no plan to procure Nightfall for the UK Armed Forces, however it will inform future UK Armed Forces' long range strike projects by showing a high risk, rapid process for developing long-range capabilities, as well as de-risking key technologies such as propulsion systems, material science and terminal phase accuracy.

With reference to his Department's press release entitled UK to develop new deep strike ballistic missile for Ukraine, published on 11 January 2026, which future Armed Forces' long range strike projects Nightfall will inform.

The new ballistic missiles developed under Project Nightfall are intended to provide Ukraine with a long range-punch to counter Russian aggression. At this stage, there is no plan to procure Nightfall for the UK Armed Forces, however it will inform future UK Armed Forces' long range strike projects, such as the deep precision strike capability.

With reference to the Declaration of Intent between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The French Republic and Ukraine relating to the deployment of multinational forces in support of the defence, reconstruction and strategic sustainability of Ukraine, who will lead the joint operations staff responsible for the strict control and management of the proposed Multinational Force.

The Multinational Force Ukraine (MNFU) will include a 3-star multinational operational HQ in Paris, led by the UK and France, to oversee all tactical and operational arrangements. Plans have also been established for a future coordination cell in Kyiv which will be set up when the force deploys. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine will conduct coordination with the MNFU joint operations staff.Planning continues at pace, but we will not be drawn into further details of any future UK Armed Forces deployment, including its control systems, due to the risk to operational security.

With reference to the Declaration of Intent between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The French Republic and Ukraine relating to the deployment of multinational forces in support of the defence, reconstruction and strategic sustainability of Ukraine, if he will outline how the deployment of the armed forces of the United Kingdom will (a) restore, (b) regenerate and (c) train the (i) security and (ii) defence forces of Ukraine.

The Multinational Force Ukraine will strengthen Ukraine's path to peace and stability, securing its skies, supporting safer seas, and regenerating its own forces. The multinational force is expected to regenerate land forces by providing logistic, armament and training experts to assist with the regeneration and reconstitution of Ukraine's land forces.Post cessation of hostilities, the Multinational Force for Ukraine will be the visible and tangible international support for Ukraine's return to peace, bolstering Ukraine's ability to restore security and stability. The regeneration of Ukraine's own forces will deter and defend against future Russian aggression, ensuring the country is able to rebuild a thriving economy, attract international investment and build a pathway to closer Euro-Atlantic integration.

With reference to the Declaration of Intent between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The French Republic and Ukraine relating to the deployment of multinational forces in support of the defence, reconstruction and strategic sustainability of Ukraine, whether he plans to increase the budget allocated to strengthening the defence-industrial potential of Ukraine.

The UK contributes significantly to Ukraine's defence industrial resilience through Task Force HIRST and Programme LYRA. A key strength of the UK's approach lies in our ability to consistently support Ukraine by bringing together our industrial base and technologists to partner with Ukrainian companies, establishing new joint ventures. The deployment of a Multinational Force to Ukraine will further reinforce our support and provide the right environment to exploit and rapidly scale the significant work the UK has already done. We will continue to use UK and international funding and the interest on immobilised Russian assets to support Ukrainian and UK industrial collaboration and continue to work with our Ukrainian partners to reduce frictions and increase materiel production. This will build on the UK's successes under HIRST: trade missions, megaprojects, equipment support; and leverage the evolution of our support under the 100 Year Partnership, through the sharing of battlefield technology and joint capability development under Programme LYRA.

With reference to the Declaration of Intent between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The French Republic and Ukraine relating to the deployment of multinational forces in support of the defence, reconstruction and strategic sustainability of Ukraine, what steps he will take to promote the participation of other nations in the Multinational Force.

As stated in the Declaration of Intent, signatories will promote the participation of other nations in the Multinational Force Ukraine, including through the means of accession provided for in the international agreement and such other arrangements as are necessary.The Secretary of State for Defence has regular engagement with Ukraine, France and other partners on Ukraine-related security in the event of a cessation of hostilities, including ongoing discussions on national contributions to the Multinational Force.

With reference to the Declaration of Intent between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The French Republic and Ukraine relating to the deployment of multinational forces in support of the defence, reconstruction and strategic sustainability of Ukraine, if he will outline how the deployment of the armed forces of the UK will strengthen the defence-industrial potential of Ukraine.

The UK contributes significantly to Ukraine's defence industrial resilience through Task Force HIRST and Programme LYRA. A key strength of the UK's approach lies in our ability to consistently support Ukraine by bringing together our industrial base and technologists to partner with Ukrainian companies, establishing new joint ventures. The deployment of a Multinational Force to Ukraine will further reinforce our support and provide the right environment to exploit and rapidly scale the significant work the UK has already done. We will continue to use UK and international funding and the interest on immobilised Russian assets to support Ukrainian and UK industrial collaboration and continue to work with our Ukrainian partners to reduce frictions and increase materiel production. This will build on the UK's successes under HIRST: trade missions, megaprojects, equipment support; and leverage the evolution of our support under the 100 Year Partnership, through the sharing of battlefield technology and joint capability development under Programme LYRA.

With reference to the Declaration of Intent between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The French Republic and Ukraine relating to the deployment of multinational forces in support of the defence, reconstruction and strategic sustainability of Ukraine, if he will outline how the UK armed forces will integrate command and control systems for the proposed Multinational Force in Ukraine.

The Multinational Force Ukraine (MNFU) has established a 3-star multinational operational headquarters in Paris, led by the UK and France.The operational headquarters oversees all tactical and operational arrangements. Plans have also been established for a future coordination cell in Kyiv which will be set up when the force deploys. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine will conduct coordination with the MNFU joint operations staff.Planning continues at pace, but we will not be drawn into further details of any future UK Armed Forces deployment, including its control and command systems, due to the risk to operational security.

With reference to the Declaration of Intent between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The French Republic and Ukraine relating to the deployment of multinational forces in support of the defence, reconstruction and strategic sustainability of Ukraine, whether the infrastructure protected by the proposed Multinational Force in Ukraine will be (a) civil and (b) military.

The Multinational Force Ukraine will strengthen Ukraine’s path to peace and stability, aiding the protection of both civil and military infrastructure by securing its skies, supporting safer seas, and regenerating the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

With reference to the Declaration of Intent between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The French Republic and Ukraine relating to the deployment of multinational forces in support of the defence, reconstruction and strategic sustainability of Ukraine, if he will publish the members of the new negotiating group.

As stated in the Declaration of Intent, a negotiating group will be established to ensure the development and conclusion of an international agreement to the Multinational Force on the territory of Ukraine. With Ukraine, this will include the UK, France and where appropriate other contributing nations to the Multinational Force.